Geographical language. Causes, symptoms, treatment

If you find red spots on your tongue that form an intricate pattern that resembles the continents on a world map, it is quite possible that these are signs of desquamative glossitis, which is called "geographical language". The causes of the appearance of the disease are unclear, but it is noticed that it develops in the presence of some common chronic ailments.

Often glossitis is diagnosed with exacerbation of diseases of the digestive tract, liver, skin, and also with acute infections, collagenoses (connective tissue lesions), helminthic invasions.

Geographical language, the causes of which can be caused by inflammatory or dystrophic phenomena, is a fairly common condition. And it can occur at any age. With this type of glossitis, the epithelium of the tongue mucosa exfoliates and the dystrophic changes in the papillae, as a result of which bright red spots are formed in these areas, surrounded by a white rim of the obsolete tissue. As a rule, several lesions of different shape and size are formed at different stages of desquamation.

The geographic language of the reason for the appearance is supposed to be different. According to experts, the desquamative glossitis is based on a disruption of tissue nutrition, which occurs for reasons unknown to science. There is an opinion that the disease can be the result of long-term use of medicines, for example, antibiotics. Many women are familiar with such a state as a geographical language. The reasons for its appearance in some women are pregnancy and menstruation. At the same time immediately after childbirth or with the termination of the monthly mucosa normalized. If there is a geographical language in the child, the reasons can be as follows: eruption of milk teeth, helminthic invasion, exudative diathesis.

In medicine, two types of desquamative glossitis are distinguished: common and acute. The first is painless, without any discomfort to the person. Some experts tend to consider the normal form of a variant of the norm, in which special treatment is not required.

The acute form is characterized by pain, burning, tingling in the area of the tongue, which is especially felt during eating. Hot, sharp, sour food only strengthens these sensations. There may be a taste disorder. There is a risk of infection of the foci of sloughing, since they are not protected by a healthy mucosa in a disease such as a geographical language.

How to treat desquamative glossitis? In the event that complaints are absent, as a rule, no treatment is prescribed. Help is required with pain and dryness of the tongue. First of all, you must exclude any irritating food: acute, rough, salty, hot. Local anesthesia is shown in the form of rinses, antiseptic and epithelializing agents (vitamins A, E in oil). If among the possible causes of glossitis revealed gastrointestinal diseases, helminthic invasions and others, one should tackle their treatment.